8 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



th6 Commissioner did not deem it best to isolate the diseased ani- 

 mals until after further and more thorough examinations had 

 been made. Accordingly, Dr. Richard Beebe, a physician of 

 Egremont, was engaged to take the case in hand and make an 

 investigation of the matter, and to report to the Commissioners 

 the results of the investigation. He commenced his labor at 

 once, and on the 24th of December, forwarded to us a history 

 of the progress of the disease from its commencement to that 

 date, its symptoms, and the results of curative efforts. He 

 says : — 



" The same day I saw you at Mr. Clark's, when I was going home, 

 about 5 o'clock P. M., I discovered a cow in D. C. Milliard's lot, 

 some little distance fi-om the others ; she was eating grass, but she 

 would take two or three bites quite rapidly and then chew a few 

 m.oments in the same way, and then stop altogether, with her head 

 within six inches of the ground, as if listening to some peculiar 

 sound, and then go on again as above stated. This was about 5 

 o'clock. In about twenty minutes after I passed, Milliard saw some- 

 thing wrong about the cow, and drove her into the stable. She went 

 directly to eating old hay, and continued to do so for some time, 

 when his man milked her and found she gave no milk of any conse- 

 quence. Still the man thought she was not sick ; told Milliard he did 

 not think she was sick. About half-past six Milliard said to his man 

 he thought the cow did not look right and wished him to go for 

 me. He came to my place, about half a mile, and went directly back ; 

 only gone about half an hour, and when he got home the cow was 

 dead, and he says he left her chewing her cud. 



" I did not make an examination till morning (Sunday, Nov. 4) ; 

 found stomach apparently healthy, small intestines and bladder 

 ulcerated and quite full of thin, bloody water. When I came to the 

 spleen it retained its shape, but the moment I touched it, it broke 

 and run like water. I could not do anything about weighing it ; 

 judged it would have weighed eight lbs. ; there was no coagula about 

 any of the blood in any part of the animal, not even the cavities ; 

 there did not appear to be any fibrine in the blood. Milliard drew 

 the cow eighty rods or so from the barn to bury her, with a yoke of 

 oxen, and when he took the oxen off, he said, ' I think that ox is 

 sick,' pointing to o Aof them. I looked at him ; he did appear some- 

 what stupid; his pmse was 50, his horns cold; he was standing 

 humped up, his hind legs too far under him, respiration too rapid, 

 and with that peculiar drawing up of the flank — sudden jerking 



